Psychos in Love Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.5

Psychos in Love Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf September 23, 2017

1986’s “Psychos in Love” certainly has the external appearance of a horror extravaganza, with an eye-catching title and marketing materials that emphasize a ghoulish viewing experience to come. But the feature isn’t a nightmare machine, it merely wants to tell a plethora of corny jokes and showcase freshly chopped limbs. And if you happen to hate grapes, here’s a cinematic experience tailored directly to that phobia. Co-writer/director Gorman Bechard arranges a massacre with “Psychos in Love,” but his heart belongs to comedy, pinching from the Marx Brothers and Monty Python as he sets up shop in Tromaville for this unexpectedly goofball take on “Annie Hall,” diluting the direct Woody Allen lifts with bloodshed and multiple maniacs. It’s a strange picture, but that’s the point.

Joe (Carmine Capobianco, who also co-scripts) is a killer of women, enjoying the slaughter of innocent people while tending bar at a local strip club. One day, he sets his sights on Kate (Debi Thibeault), a charming young woman who’s also interesting in taking lives, targeting males she meets casually and during her day job as a manicurist. Sparks fly, and the two quickly commence a relationship, bonding over bloodlust and a shared hatred of grapes. However, their union isn’t perfect, and soon the ways of murder hold little excitement, putting strain on the couple as they hunt for kicks. Complicating matters is Herman (Frank Stewart), an average suburban plumber who’s also a cannibal, and one interested in Joe and Kate’s macabre obsession with serial killing.

“Psychos in Love” is a film obsessed with bad jokes. There are a lot of visceral things that happen in the movie, but Bechard always returns to his love of comedy, and not even the dark stuff, keeping the feature fairly silly for most of its run time. Sure, the effort opens with a montage of Joe’s daily habit, watching the creep chop and strangle his victims, and Kate eventually gets in on the action, displaying her abilities to murder doofy guys. But Bechard is more concerned with his tributes, setting up the tale as an “Annie Hall”-style riff on relationships, offering Joe and Kate interviews where they share their thoughts on the craziness of fate. Their meet cute is a mutual disdain for grapes, which part of the feature’s charm, going to extreme hatred of a fruit to help secure everlasting love, albeit warmth that’s challenged by daily cohabitational pressures and a dimming love for causing bodily harm. Their temporary replacement? The thrill of renting VHS tapes.

I miss 1986.

“Psychos in Love” is gory, extremely so at times. Bechard delights in the dismantling of bodies and the pooling of fluids, while Herman adds a hunger for flesh, making already gruesome material all the more disgusting. Special effects are crude, but they’re not mean-spirited, offering a level of genre escapism as this coupling participates in some heinous acts. Humor is here to lighten matters up, but the jokes are hoary and insistent, with Bechard a bit too slavish to classic comedy timing, especially with his limited cast, who aren’t properly trained for this sort of thespian speed. The sicko side of “Psychos in Love” is more agreeable and vivid, leading to a few foul confrontations that deliver on marketing promises. Not that the feature should be serious, but when it slips into shtick coma, one may wish for the return of extreme close-ups of sloshy, backed-up sinks full of floating fingers and goopy guts.

Psychos in Love Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.33:1 aspect ratio) presentation is "Newly scanned and restored in 2K from the 16mm original camera negative." It's a BD upgrade for a crudely shot movie, but it works superbly, coming through with a bright, filmic handle on the feature's limited visual needs. Clarity is strong during the viewing experience, delivering textures on skin and sets, and the picture's appetite for violence is vivid, offering squishy gore zone visits that add to the gross-out factor. Colors are vibrant and secure, with more aggressive reds on blood balanced well with pink and blue costuming. Greenery is also appealing. Delineation is satisfactory. Source is in fine shape, lacking any major issues with damage.

Psychos in Love Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 1.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix doesn't offer as much firepower as the visual experience, with age most noticeable, coming through with periods of hiss and pops, along with mild points of damage. Intelligibility isn't threatened, as dialogue exchanges are preserved, but highs can be crispy. Scoring efforts are adequate, adding a synth creep to the listening event. Heaviness is felt. Sound effects are preserved, keeping their blunt appeal.

Psychos in Love Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Booklet (10 pages) offers essays from Art Ettinger and Matt Desiderio.

• Intro (:32) is a brief welcome from director Gorman Bechard and star Carmine Capobianco.

• Commentary #1 features Bechard and Capobianco.

• Commentary #2 features Bechard.

• "Directing the Psychos" (11:11, HD) is a conversation with Bechard, who shares the odd fact that "Psychos in Love" was written with Capobianco in various strip clubs, with the men ignoring stage talent to work on pages inside a sexually charged environment. Bechard also highlights location work, with most businesses owned by his father, who also invested money in the movie. The helmer shares inspiration from "Annie Hall" and numerous comedic influences, and also makes a curious claim that "Psychos in Love" is somehow a precursor to "Scream."

• "Playing a Psycho" (15:26, HD) sits down with Capobianco to explore the creation of "Psychos in Love," focusing on his specific contributions to the screenplay, adding his voice whenever he could. Capobianco has plenty of anecdotes to share about the shoot, highlighting special effects and time with co-stars, and there's some information provided about the picture's weird theme song. Also examined is the film's rise in cult fame, with Capobianco unaware of the effort's popularity for many years.

• "Discussing Psychos" (20:06, HD) brings Bechard and Capobianco together for a group chat, with the creators of "Psychos in Love" trading anecdotes and war stories.

• "Carmine Capobianco Q&A, Cinema Wasteland 2016" (49:18, HD) is a lengthy panel from an Ohio horror convention, with the star of "Psychos in Love" sharing even more stories from the making of the movie and decoding its cult appeal, also hustling for T-shirts sales. An audience Q&A is included.

• "Making 'Psychos'" (13:01, SD) is a VHS-shot documentary from 1986, capturing the on-set mood with key members of the cast and crew, even finding Capobianco snacking on grapes between shots. While it doesn't provide a complete overview of production achievements, it remains a valuable summary of the effort that went into the shoot and the sense of humor that brightened the mood.

• Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery (10:39) shares candid snaps of the cast and crew at work on "Psychos in Love," with some nice BTS pics mixed in with posed silliness.

• Promotional Image Gallery (1:20) collects VHS covers and advertising materials, including a heart-shaped sales sheet sent to video stores.

• Rough Edit Outtakes and Extended Sequences (9:55, SD) compile short additions to "Psychos in Love," most showcasing additional gore shots.

• Alternate Opening Credit Sequence (1:12, SD) provides the VHS opener for "Psychos in Love," presented plainly and silently.

• "Highlights from the Stageplay" (13:46, SD) takes viewers back to 2003, where the Broom Street Theater in Madison, Wisconsin created a theatrical version of "Psychos in Love."

• And a Trailer (1:44, HD) is included.

Psychos in Love Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Psychos in Love" doesn't take itself seriously. In fact, it doesn't even invest in its own reality, breaking the fourth wall as the camera crew periodically invades the story, adding to Bechard's quest to make something outrageous. He doesn't quite achieve his dream of a horror farce, but "Psychos in Love" does have a special B-movie spirit that keeps it compelling, and it's hard to discount a production that's entirely consumed with providing a fun viewing experience for those who can handle some ghastly acts committed by seemingly average people.